>>> Jalen Rose Previews the Field of 65
 

ASSISTANT COACH TOURNAMENT

Talk about too egos.

“I thought Magarity had a big head,” Don Harnum told Angela Lento. “This place is loaded with guys with expanded skulls. There is no shortage of confidence in the building today.”

My pal Harnum was referring to 32 assistants who were all vying for 16 spots. There was a lot at stake and everyone was posturing for position.

“I'm extremely focused on getting to the Fashionable 4,” said Detroit’s Bacari Alexander. “Tony Jones in on borrowed time. They beat us by 1 point in the Horizon Championship so I'm poised and ready for the next opponent with my eyes on having a shot at the champ. My next opponent is a fighter, but my "Steve Harvey" collection should pull me through!”

Jones and his pal Jalen Rose were quick with a rebuttal.

“Bacari who,” asked Jones.

“Isn’t that a drink,” wondered Rose.

Alexander seemed fired up by those comments as he cruised past Carlin Hartman (UL-Lafayette) to earn the first spot in the Sensational Sixteen.

“Bacari and Coke advanced to the next round,” asked Jones.

Alexander is making his first appearance on the Runway and given his size and stature he looks like a future candidate for Portly & Stout membership. Also fitting that bill is Northern Colorado’s Shaun Vandiver who was talking like a champion.

“With me being such a seasoned veteran, I had to take advantage of the youngster's inability to recall my offensive prowess on the fashion court,” Vandiver said in reference to beating his first round opponent, Marcus Mason (Denver). “I think if he spends his summer studying his colors, he'll be back in the field next season.”

Next up for Vandiver, who is one good meal away from joining the Portly & Stout club, is Rodney Terry (Texas), a former No. 1 in the FPI. That’s a fact that didn’t seem to concern Vandiver.

“Rodney is like a lot of mid-major teams in the field,” Vandiver said. “He wins a lot of games, but just does not get to the big show and the final four. I hope I can catch him off-guard with my pinstripes and keep advancing.”

You want to talk about tremendous size on the stage, how about an Alexander vs. Vandiver tilt in the Sensational Sixteen? Well, it’s going to happen. The pinstripes were too much for Terry.

“Bacari and Vandiver,” asked a puzzled Tony Jones. “That sounds like a place where you can get a knock-off Versace.”

Keeping with the theme of size, my good pal Jeff Ruland (Iona) strolled looking like Waylon Jennings with a Balco contract. Apparently the big boy thought he was going to use his size to influence the judges. His assistant, Vin Parise was in action against Patrick Sellers (Connecticut).

Are you kidding me? That stare might intimidate Angela, but it certainly isn’t making me shake in my boots. Why don’t we go in the other room and lock the door. Let’s see who walks out unscathed in sixty-seconds.

“With my first year on the job, and the enormous pressures from Coach Ruland to follow in his footsteps and dress like a cast member from the Sopranos, it makes my opening round victory one of the highlights of my professional career,” said Parise. “I hope to continue this magical run to the Elite Eight and Final Four.”

Enormous pressure to follow Ruland? Are you kidding me? Hey Vin, if Balco boy gives you any trouble, you just let me know.

The task of facing the Ruland gang is what faced Sellers.

“I'm just happy to be back in this great tournament again,” said Sellers. “There are so many guys who are really fashionable it's an honor to be apart of this. I roomed with Vin Parise at a basketball camp a couple of summers ago and I know what he brings to the table. Smooth, sleek, and a cool dresser. This is going to be a tough one but I'm looking forward to the challenge.”

We will update this tilt later.

Garland Mance (Rutgers), one of the favorites in the field, was cool as can be as he made last minute preparations for his second round contest. His opponent, Mike Winecki (Richmond) took time to visit with me.

“I did not know I could even compete with the likes of a Donnie Marsh (Indiana),”
Winiecki said of his first round win. “I was desperate in the second half and threw together a sport coat and slack combo zone that helped turn the game. I feel very fortunate to win this first round game, and I'm looking forward to the challenge of Garland ‘Smooth’ Mance.”

Mike has obviously been well versed in fashion, by his mentor Jerry Wainwright (Richmond). A tremendous young coach with a bright future, but the day was not kind to stylish assistant. Mance proved to be a little too much.

George Mason’s Jim Larranaga and San Diego’s Brad Holland were a little down after falling off the Head Coach state, but both were in attendance to see how their protégés would fair in the Assistant Coach field.

Bill Courtney (George Mason) would have a tall task, facing No. 1 seed Ed Huckaby (Wright State), but he seemed lose and relaxed.

“It's always nice to beat somebody in our conference,” Courtney said of his first round win. “I mean Tom (Parrotta) is the king of New York. I feel like such a tough first round test has prepared me to pull off a big time upset in the next round. Even if I lose, I'll blame it on the Midwest bias. I have no idea what that is, but that's my excuse if I lose to a guy from Ohio.”

Brad’s guy Nick Earnest (San Diego) was still speechless after beating Ronny Thompson (Arkansas) in the first round. He was slated to faced Anthony Edwards, Joel Sobotka (Cal-State Northridge) in the second round.

“I am excited to be back competing in fashion madness,” said Sobotka. “I missed the tournament last season, but the year away gave me time to revamp my wardrobe. I now have access to better threads in Southern California, which will hopefully help me. I would have liked to have done better than a No. 10 seed, but this time of year you can throw out the FPI. It’s all about who brings the best threads.”

I tried to get Sobotka to comment on a possible return to E.R., but he was obviously focused on his competition for the day.

One guy that was happy to stop and chat was Charlottes’s Bobby Kummer. He was bounced early in his only other tournament appearance, while coaching at Texas A&M. After a first round win in 2005, it appeared that the pressure was off and now he could just focus on his gear.

“I figured I would win my first round match,” said Kummer. “Coach (Rob) Jeter brought his Midwestern style up against my Southern style, which has a touch of Italy. Now I have to deal with another Midwestern guy. I haven’t yet broken out the entire Italian collection, but I can go to it if needed today.”

According to Angela, a few years ago Kummer was shopping in Paris for clothes when he bumped into Gary Waters. Yes, that is a true story. There is also an interesting story behind Kummer’s Italian connection, which we will expand on if Kummer advances to the Sensational Sixteen.

Let’s see who did advance. Here is a quick look at some of the key results of the day.

No. 9 Bill Courtney (George Mason) out-styled Ed Huckaby (Wright State): Coach Huckaby is the second No. 1 seed to be sent packing. And now coach Courtney has bragging rights over his boss, Coach Larranaga.

No. 13 Vin Parise (Iona) defeated Patrick Sellers (Connecticut): What the hell happened here? Are you serious? I am going to have to have a chat with Mr. Balco. It’s brutal to be intimidating Angela. I am going to file a protest on this one.

No. 14 Korey White (Northern Arizona) got past No. 11 Jeff Estis (UMBC): No major shocker here. “I am very excited to advance in the Runway to the Fashionable 4,” said White. “I work hard to represent myself and the program well. I hope to keep the dream alive for another round.”

No. 15 Donald Whiteside (Northern Illinois) won again, beating No. 7 Bill Grier (Gonzaga): “I was humbled and pleased with my defeat of Johnny Dawkins, but believe me, I still have a few tricks up my sleeve. Coach Grier was a formidable opponent, but my wardrobe is just getting started.”

The comments and the competition have been tremendous so far. It is setting up to be an outstanding Sensational Sixteen for both the head coaches and assistants. We have super matchups on the horizon so the trash talking should reach another level.

Congratulations to all those who advanced. And for those who failed to claim victory today -- too bad.

CLICK HERE to see all the Runway to the Fashionable 4 results.